Bordeaux 2016 was ‘for the few, not the many’, Liv-ex argues in its new report, examining the success of this year’s campaign.
Looking at what appeared to be the most overvalued or undervalued wines according to its fair value methodology, Liv-ex concludes that this year’s campaign ‘appears to have been reasonably successful’.
The report claims that ‘there is little doubt among critics and the trade that Bordeaux 2016 is an exceptional vintage’, and while prices were higher than many expected, increases were down compared to last year.
However, ‘too many prices were inconsistent with those in the secondary market’, while some chateaux seemed ‘reticent’ to release sufficient quantities of their wines.
Furthermore, the report notes, ‘En Primeur continues to be hindered by an opaque system of price discovery’.
‘Price information in the secondary market can be harnessed to produce logical, fair prices that could help to restore confidence in En Primeur. As our case studies show, En-Primeur can work well when both producers and consumers benefit. This is more likely when a wine is priced close to, or at a small discount to, its fair value.’
Therefore, the report concludes that the campaign was ‘not the triumph it could have been’, adding that it’s therefore unsurprising that it’s being increasingly referred to as a ‘campaign for the few, not the many’.
